ETA Welcomes BitPay; CEO Predicts More Bitcoin Partnerships
ETA CEO Jason Oxman said after Aug. 6 admission of BitPay as the group’s first virtual-currency member, the association expects more partnerships between payment firms and bitcoin startups.
On Aug. 6 the Electronic Transactions Association admitted BitPay as its first virtual-currency member. The ETA represents payments and commerce companies including Visa, MasterCard, Amazon and PayPal. The group indicated it will engage with bitcoin processors and other emerging payment technologies.
Jason Oxman, the ETA’s chief executive, said the organization expects more partnerships between established payment firms and bitcoin startups as members respond to customer and merchant demand. Oxman described the ETA’s role as one of facilitation: “At bottom, our industry is in the business of facilitating electronic transactions, and those electronic transactions are going to take the form of whatever the customer or merchant of choice agrees is going to be the form of their electronic transaction.”
Educational outreach from the Bitcoin Foundation helped ETA members examine bitcoin’s business implications. Oxman pointed to a past ETA event where the foundation’s general counsel explained bitcoin in a business context, which led members to view it as an “interesting development.” He also noted that at least one ETA member has negotiated with a bitcoin processor.
Oxman addressed regulatory questions tied to bitcoin and blockchain systems. He noted regulators typically focus on consumer protection when new payment systems emerge and urged officials to study how the systems work and how providers protect users before imposing rules. New York’s Department of Financial Services extended the public comment period on a proposed BitLicense by 45 days to Oct. 21 after a joint letter from several major Chinese exchanges raised concerns. The ETA has previously worked to prevent government policy from unduly restricting new payment options, citing past involvement in issues related to services such as PayPal.
The association will continue to assess partnerships based on member interest and market demand. Attendees at ETA events now routinely consider bitcoin a development to monitor.
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